1. Field of the Invention
This invention is directed to a crystalline form of human insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1) and more particularly to a crystal of human IGF-1, a method of crystallization thereof, and its structure, obtained by x-ray diffraction. In addition, the invention relates to methods of identifying new IGF-1 agonist molecules based on biophysical and biochemical data suggesting that a single detergent molecule that contacts residues known to be important for IGF-1 binding protein (IGFBP) interactions binds to IGF-1 specifically, and blocks binding of IGFBP-1 and IGFBP-3.
2. Description of Related Disclosures
There is a large body of literature on the actions and activities of IGFs (IGF-1, IGF-2, and IGF variants). Human IGF-1 is a serum protein of 70 amino acids and 7649 daltons with a pI of 8.4 (Rinderknecht and Humbel, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 73: 4379-4381 (1976); Rinderknecht and Humbel, J. Biol. Chem. 253: 2769 (1978)) belonging to a family of somatomedins with insulin-like and mitogenic biological activities that modulate the action of growth hormone (GH) (Van Wyk et al., Recent Prog. Horm. Res., 30: 259 (1974); Binoux, Ann. Endocrinol., 41: 157 (1980); Clemmons and Van Wyk, Handbook Exp. Pharmacol., 57: 161 (1981); Baxter, Adv. Clin. Chem., 25: 49 (1986); U.S. Pat. No. 4,988,675; WO 91/03253; WO 93/23071). IGFs share a high sequence identity with insulin, being about 49% identical thereto. Unlike insulin, however, which is synthesized as a precursor protein containing a 33-amino-acid segment known as the C-peptide (which is excised to yield a covalently linked dimer of the remaining A and B chains), IGFs are single polypeptides (see FIG. 1).
In the developing embryo, the absence of IGF-1 leads to severe growth retardation that continues post-natally (Baker et al., Cell, 75: 73-82 (1993); Powell-Braxton et al., Genes Dev., 7: 2609-2617 (1993); Liu et al., Cell, 75: 59-72 (1993); Liu et al., Molecular Endocrinol., 12: 1452-1462 (1998)). While most (greater than 75%) of serum IGF-1 is produced by the liver in response to growth hormone, this liver-derived IGF-1 has been shown to be unnecessary for post-natal body growth in mice (Sjogren et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 96: 7088-7092 (1999)). Rather, it is the locally produced, non-hepatic IGF-1, acting in a paracrine/autocrine manner, which appears to be responsible for most of the post-natal growth-promoting effects of IGF-1 (Schlechter et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 83: 7932-7934 (1986); Isaksson et al., Science, 216: 1237-1239 (1982)). Consistent with its growth-promoting effects, IGF-1 is a powerful mitogen, regulating diverse cellular functions such as cell-cycle progression, apoptosis, and cellular differentiation (reviewed in Jones and Clemmons, Endocr. Rev., 16: 3-34 (1995) and in LeRoith, Endocrinology, 141: 1287-1288 (2000)).
IGFs have been implicated in a variety of cellular functions and disease processes, including cell cycle progression, proliferation, differentiation, and insulin-like effects in insulin-resistant diabetes. Thus, IGF has been suggested as a therapeutic tool in a variety of diseases and injuries Due to this range of activities, IGF-1 has been tested in mammals for such widely disparate uses as wound healing, treatment of kidney disorders, treatment of diabetes, reversal of whole-body catabolic states such as AIDS-related wasting, treatment of heart conditions such as congestive heart failure, and treatment of neurological disorders (Guler et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 85: 4889-4893 (1988); Schalch et al., J. Clin. Metab., 77: 1563-1568 (1993); Froesch et al., Horm. Res., 42: 66-71 (1994); Vlachopapadopoulou et al., J. Clin. Endo. Metab., 12: 3715-3723 (1995); Saad et al., Diabetologia, 37: Abstract 40 (1994); Schoenle et al., Diabetologia, 34: 675-679 (1991); Morrow et al., Diabetes, 42 (Suppl.): 269 (1993) (abstract); Kuzuya et al., Diabetes, 42: 696-705 (1993); Schalch et al., “Short-term metabolic effects of recombinant human insulin-like growth factor I (rhIGF-I) in type II diabetes mellitus”, in: Spencer EM, ed., Modern Concepts of Insulin-like Growth Factors (New York: Elsevier: 1991) pp. 705-715713; Zenobi et al., J. Clin. Invest., 90: 2234-2241 (19931992); Elahi et al., “Hemodynamic and metabolic responses to human insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-I) in men,” in: Modern Concepts of Insulin-Like Growth Factors, Spencer, EM, ed. (Elsevier: New York, 1991), pp. 219-224; Quin et al., New Engl. J. Med., 323: 1425-1426 (1990); Schalch et al., “Short-term metabolic effects of recombinant human insulin-like growth factor 1 (rhIGF-1) in type II diabetes mellitus,” in: Modern Concepts of Insulin-Like Growth Factors, Spencer, EM, ed., (Elsevier: New York, 1991), pp. 705-713; Schoenle et al., Diabetologia, 34: 675-679 (1991); Usala et al., N. Eng. J. Med., 327: 853-857 (1992); Lieberman et al., J. Clin. Endo. Metab., 75: 30-36 (1992); Zenobi et al., J. Clin. Invest., 90: 2234-2241 (1992); Zenobi et al., J. Clin. Invest., 89: 1908-1913 (1992); Kerr et al., J. Clin. Invest., 91: 141-147 (1993); Jabri et al., Diabetes, 43: 369-374 (1994); Duerr et al., J. Clin. Invest., 95: 619-627 (1995); Bondy, Ann Intern. Med., 120: 593-601 (1994); Hammerman and Miller, Am. J. Physiol., 265: F1-F14 (1993); Hammerman and Miller, J. Am. Soc. Nephrol., 5: 1-11 (1994); and Barinaga et al., Science, 264: 772-774 (1994)).
The patent literature also abounds with disclosures of various uses of IGF-1, or compounds that increase active concentration of IGF-1, to treat mammals, especially human patients, for example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,714,460; 5,273,961; 5,466,670; 5,126,324; 5,187,151; 5,202,119; 5,374,620; 5,106,832; 4,988,675; 5,106,832; 5,068,224; 5,093,317; 5,569,648; and 4,876,242; WO 92/11865; WO 96/01124; WO 91/03253; WO 93/25219; WO 93/08826; and WO 94/16722.
The IGF system is also composed of membrane-bound receptors for IGF-1, IGF-2, and insulin. The Type 1 IGF receptor (IGF-1R) is closely related to the insulin receptor in structure and shares some of its signaling pathways (Jones and Clemmons, supra). The IGF-2 receptor is a clearance receptor that appears not to transmit an intracellular signal (Jones and Clemmons, supra). Since IGF-1 and IGF-2 bind to IGF-1R with a much higher affinity than to the insulin receptor (Cascieri et al., Biochemistry, 27: 3229-3233 (1988)), it is most likely that most of the effects of IGF-1 and IGF-2 are mediated by IGF-1R (Humbel, Eur. J Biochem. 190:445-462 (1990); Ballard et al., “Does IGF-I ever act through the insulin receptor?”, in Baxter et al. (Eds.), The Insulin-Like Growth Factors and Their Regulatory Proteins, (Amsterdam: Elsevier, 1994), pp. 131-138).
IGF-1R is an ∀2∃2 heterotetramer of disulfide-linked ∀ and ∃ subunits. ∀∃ dimers are themselves disulfide linked on the cell surface to form a covalent heterotetramer. As in the insulin/insulin receptor complex, IGF-1 binds to the IGF-1R with a 1:2 stoichiometry (De Meyts, Diabetologia, 37: S135-S148 (1994)), with a high affinity site (Kd about 0.4 nM) and a low affinity site (Kd about 6 nM) (Tollefsen and Thompson, J. Biol. Chem., 263: 16267-16273 (1988)). The x-ray crystal structure of the first three domains of IGF-1R has been determined (Garrett et al., Nature, 394,395-399 (1998)). It contains three distinct domains (L1, Cys-rich, L2). Mutations that affect IGF-1 binding map to the concave surface of the receptor.
IGF-1R is a key factor in normal cell growth and development (Isaksson et al., Endocrine Reviews, 8: 426-438 (1987); Daughaday and Rotwein, Endocrine Rev., 10:68-91 (1989)). Increasing evidence suggests, however, that IGF-1R signaling also plays a critical role in growth of tumor cells, cell transformation, and tumorigenesis (Baserga, Cancer Res., 55:249-252 (1995)). Key examples include loss of metastatic phenotype of murine carcinoma cells by treatment with antisense RNA to the IGF-1R (Long et al., Cancer Res., 55:1006-1009 (1995)) and the in vitro inhibition of human melanoma cell motility (Stracke et al., J Biol. Chem., 264:21544-21549 (1989)) and of human breast cancer cell growth by the addition of IGF-1R antibodies (Rohlik et al., Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun., 149:276-281 (1987)).
The IGFs are potent breast cancer cell mitogens based on the observation that IGF-1 enhanced breast cancer cell proliferation in vitro (Cullen et al., Cancer Res., 50:48-53 (1990)). Breast cancers express IGF-2 and IGF-1R, providing all the required effectors for an autocrine-loop-based proliferation paradigm (Quinn et al., J Biol. Chem., 271:11477-11483 (1996); Steller et al., Cancer Res., 56:1761-1765 (1996)). Because breast cancer is a common malignancy affecting approximately one in every eight women and is a leading cause of death from cancer in North American women (LeRoith et al., Ann. Int. Med., 122:54-59 (1995)), new rational therapies are required for intervention. IGF-1 can suppress apoptosis, and therefore cells lacking IGF-1Rs or having compromised IGF-1R signaling pathways may give rise to tumor cells that selectively die via apoptosis (Long et al., Cancer Res., 55:1006-1009 (1995)). Furthermore, it has recently become evident that alterations in IGF signaling in the context of other disease states, such as diabetes, may be responsible for exacerbating the complications of retinopathy (Smith et al., Science, 276:1706-1709 (1997)) and nephropathy (Horney et al., Am. J Physiol. 274: F1045-F1053 (1998)).
IGF-1 in vivo is mostly found in complex with a family of at least six serum proteins known as IGFBPs (Jones and Clemmons, supra; Bach and Rechler, Diabetes Reviews, 3: 38-61 (1995)), that modulate access of the IGFs to the IGF-1R. They also regulate the concentrations of IGF-1 and IGF-2 in the circulation and at the level of the tissue IGF-1R (Clemmons et al., Anal. NY Acad. Sci. USA, 692:10-21 (1993)). The IGFBPs bind IGF-1 and IGF-2 with varying affinities and specificities (Jones and Clemmons, supra; Bach and Rechler, supra). For example, IGFBP-3 binds IGF-1 and IGF-2 with a similar affinity, whereas IGFBP-2 and IGFBP-6 bind IGF-2 with a much higher affinity than they bind IGF-1 (Bach and Rechler, supra; Oh et al., Endocrinology, 132, 1337-1344 (1993)). The major carrier protein is IGFBP-3. Nothing is currently known about the stoichiometry of binding in these complexes of IGF-1 and its IGFBPs, due to the heterogeneous size of the complexes caused by glycosylation.
IGF-1 naturally occurs in human body fluids, for example, blood and human cerebral spinal fluid. Although IGF-1 is produced in many tissues, most circulating IGF-1 is believed to be synthesized in the liver. The IGFBPs are believed to modulate the biological activity of IGF-1 (Jones and Clemmons, supra), with IGFBP-1 (Lee et al., Proc. Soc. Exp. Biol. &Med., 204: 4-29 (1993)) being implicated as the primary binding protein involved in glucose metabolism (Baxter, “Physiological roles of IGF binding proteins”, in: Spencer (Ed.), Modern Concepts of Insulin-like Growth Factors (Elsevier, New York, 1991), pp. 371-380). IGFBP-1 production by the liver is regulated by nutritional status, with insulin directly suppressing its production (Suikkari et al., J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., 66: 266-272 (1988)).
The function of IGFBP-1 in vivo is poorly understood. The administration of purified human IGFBP-1 to rats has been shown to cause an acute, but small, increase in blood glucose (Lewitt et al., Endocrinology, 129: 2254-2256 (1991)). The regulation of IGFBP-1 is somewhat better understood. It has been proposed (Lewitt and Baxter, Mol. Cell Endocrinology, 79: 147-152 (1991)) that when blood glucose rises and insulin is secreted, IGFBP-1 is suppressed, allowing a slow increase in “free” IGF-1 levels that might assist insulin action on glucose transport. Such a scenario places the function of IGFBP-1 as a direct regulator of blood glucose.
In most cases, addition of exogenous IGFBP blunts the effects of IGF-1. For example, the growth-stimulating effect of estradiol on the MCF-7 human breast cancer cells is associated with decreased IGFBP-3 mRNA and protein accumulation, while the anti-estrogen ICI 182780 causes growth inhibition and increased IGFBP-3 mRNA and protein levels (Huynh et al., J Biol. Chem., 271:1016-1021 (1996); Oh et al., Prog. Growth Factor Res., 6:503-512 (1995)). It has also been reported that the in vitro inhibition of breast cancer cell proliferation by retinoic acid may involve altered IGFBP secretion by tumor cells or decreased circulating IGF-1 levels in vivo (LeRoith et al., Ann. Int. Med., 122:54-59 (1995); Oh et al., (1995), supra). Contrary to this finding, treatment of MCF-7 cells with the anti-estrogen tamoxifen decreases IGF-1R signaling in a manner that is unrelated to decreased IGFBP production (Lee et al., J Endocrinol., 152:39 (1997)). Additional support for the general anti-proliferative effects of the IGFBPs is the striking finding that IGFBP-3 is a target gene of the tumor suppressor, p53 (Buckbinder et al., Nature, 377:646-649 (1995)). This suggests that the suppressor activity of p53 is, in part, mediated by IGFBP-3 production and the consequential blockade of IGF action (Buckbinder et al., supra). These results indicate that the IGFBPs can block cell proliferation by modulating paracrine/autocrine processes regulated by IGF-1/IGF-2. A corollary to these observations is the finding that prostate-specific antigen (PSA) is an IGFBP-3-protease, which upon activation, increases the sensitivity of tumor cells to the actions of IGF-1/IGF-2 due to the proteolytic inactivation of IGFBP-3 (Cohen et al., J. Endocr., 142:407-415 (1994)). The IGFBPs complex with IGF-1/IGF-2 and interfere with the access of IGF-1/IGF-2 to IGF-1Rs (Clemmons et al., Anal. NY Acad. Sci. USA, 692:10-21 (1993)). IGFBP-1, -2 and -3 inhibit cell growth following addition to cells in vitro (Lee et al., J Endocrinol., 152:39 (1997); Feyen et al., J Biol. Chem., 266:19469-19474 (1991)). Further, IGFBP-1 (McGuire et al., J Natl. Cancer Inst., 84: 1336-1341(1992); Figueroa et al., J Cell Physiol., 157:229-236 (1993)), IGFBP-3 (Oh et al. (1995), supra; Pratt and Pollak, Biophys. Res. Commun., 198:292-297 (1994)) and IGFBP-2 have all been shown to inhibit IGF-1 or estrogen-induced breast cancer cell proliferation at nanomolar concentrations in vitro. These findings support the idea that the IGFBPs are potent antagonists of IGF action. There is also evidence for a direct effect of IGFBP-3 on cells through its own cell surface receptor, independent of IGF interactions (Oh et al., J Biol. Chem., 268:14964-14971 (1993); Valentinis et al., Mol. Endocrinol., 9:361-367 (1995)). Taken together, these findings underscore the importance of IGF and IGF-1R as targets for therapeutic use.
IGFs have mitogenic and anti-apoptotic influences on normal and transformed prostate epithelial cells (Hsing et al., Cancer Research, 56: 5146 (1996); Culig et al., Cancer Research, 54: 5474 (1994); Cohen et al., Hormone and Metabolic Research, 26: 81 (1994); Iwamura et al., Prostate, 22: 243 (1993); Cohen et al., J. Clin. Endocrin. &Metabol., 73: 401 (1991); Rajah et al., J. Biol. Chem., 272: 12181 (1997)). Most circulating IGF-1 originates in the liver, but IGF bioactivity in tissues is related not only to levels of circulating IGFs and IGFBPs, but also to local production of IGFs, IGFBPs, and IGFBP proteases (Jones and Clemmons, supra). Person-to-person variability in levels of circulating IGF-1 and IGFBP-3 (the major circulating IGFBP (Jones and Clemmons, supra)) is considerable (Juul et al., J. Clin. Endocrinol. &Metabol., 78: 744 (1994); Juul et al., J. Clin. Endocrinol. &Metabol., 80: 2534 (1995)), and heterogeneity in serum IGF-1 levels appears to reflect heterogeneity in tissue IGF bioactivity. Markers relating to IGF-axis components can be used as a risk marker for prostate cancer, as PSA is likewise used (WO 99/38011).
Unlike most other growth factors, the IGFs are present in high concentrations in the circulation, but only a small fraction of the IGFs is not protein bound. For example, it is generally known that in humans or rodents, less than 1% of the IGFs in blood is in a “free” or unbound form (Juul et al., Clin. Endocrinol., 44: 515-523 (1996); Hizuka et al., Growth Regulation, 1: 51-55 (1991); Hasegawa et al., J. Clin. Endocrinol. Metab., 80: 3284-3286 (1995)). The overwhelming majority of the IGFs in blood circulate as part of a non-covalently associated ternary complex composed of IGF-1 or IGF-2, IGFBP-3, and a large protein termed the acid-labile subunit (ALS). The ternary complex of an IGF, IGFBP-3, and ALS has a molecular weight of approximately 150,000 daltons, and it has been suggested that the function of this complex in the circulation may be to serve as a reservoir and buffer for IGF-1 and IGF-2, preventing rapid changes in free IGF-1 or IGF-2.
There has been much work identifying the regions on IGF-1 and IGF-2 that bind to the IGFBPs (Bayne et al., J. Biol. Chem., 265: 15648-15652 (1990); Dubaquie and Lowman, Biochemistry, 38: 6386-6396 (1999); and U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,077,276; 5,164,370; and 5,470,828). For example, it has been discovered that the N-terminal region of IGF-1 and IGF-2 is critical for binding to the IGFBPs (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,077,276; 5,164,370; and 5,470,828). Thus, the natural IGF-1 variant, designated des (1-3) IGF-1, binds poorly to IGFBPs.
A similar amount of research has been devoted to identifying the regions on IGF-1 and IGF-2 that bind to IGF-1 R (Bayne et al., supra; Oh et al., Endocrinology (1993), supra). It was found that the tyrosine residues in IGF-1 at positions 24, 31, and 60 are crucial to the binding of IGF-1 to IGF-1R (Bayne et al., supra). Mutant IGF-1 molecules where one or more of these tyrosine residues are substituted showed progressively reduced binding to IGF-1R. Bayne et al., supra, also investigated whether such mutants of IGF-1 could bind to IGF-1R and to the IGFBPs. They found that quite different residues on IGF-1 and IGF-2 are used to bind to the IGFBPs from those used to bind to IGF-1R. It is therefore possible to produce IGF variants that show reduced binding to the IGFBPs, but, because they bind well to IGF-1R, show maintained activity in in vitro activity assays.
Also reported was an IGF variant that binds to IGFBPs but not to IGF receptors and therefore shows reduced activity in in vitro activity assays (Bar et al., Endocrinology, 127: 3243-3245 (1990)). In this variant, designated (1-27, gly4, 38-70)-hIGF-1, residues 28-37 of the C-region of human IGF-1 (SEQ ID NO: 1) are replaced by a four-residue glycine bridge.
Other truncated IGF-1 variants are disclosed. For example, in the patent literature, WO 96/33216 describes a truncated variant having residues 1-69 of authentic IGF-1 (SEQ ID NO: 1). EP 742,228 discloses two-chain IGF-1 superagonists, which are derivatives of the naturally occurring, single-chain IGF-1 having an abbreviated C-region. The IGF-1 analogs are of the formula: BCn, A wherein B is the B-region of IGF-1 or a functional analog thereof, C is the C-region of IGF-1 (SEQ ID NO: 1) or a functional analog thereof, n is the number of amino acids in the C-region and is from about 6 to about 12, and A is the A-region of IGF-1 or a functional analog thereof.
Additionally, Cascieri et al., Biochemistry, 27: 3229-3233 (1988) discloses four mutants of IGF-1 (SEQ ID NO: 1), three of which have reduced affinity to IGF-1R. These mutants are: (Phe23,Phe24,Tyr25)IGF-1 (which is equipotent to human IGF-1 in its affinity to the Types 1 and 2 IGF and insulin receptors), (Leu24)IGF-1 and (Ser24)IGF-1 (which have a lower affinity than IGF-1 to the human placental IGF-1R, the placental insulin receptor, and the IGF-1R of rat and mouse cells), and desoctapeptide (Leu24)IGF-1 (in which the loss of aromaticity at position 24 is combined with the deletion of the carboxyl-terminal D-region of hIGF-1 (SEQ ID NO: 1), which has lower affinity than (Leu24)IGF-1 for the IGF-1R and higher affinity for the insulin receptor). These four mutants have normal affinities for human serum binding proteins.
Bayne et al., J. Biol. Chem., 263: 6233-6239 (1988) discloses four structural analogs of human IGF-1 (SEQ ID NO: 1): a B-chain mutant in which the first 16 amino acids of IGF-1 were replaced with the first 17 amino acids of the B-chain of insulin, (Gln3,Ala4)IGF-1, (Tyr15,Leu16)IGF-1, and (Gln3,Ala4,Tyr15,Leu16)IGF-1. These studies identify some of the regions of IGF-1 that are responsible for maintaining high-affinity binding with the serum binding protein and the Type 2 IGF receptor.
In another study, Bayne et al., J. Biol. Chem., 264: 11004-11008 (1988) discloses three structural analogs of IGF-1 (SEQ ID NO: 1): (1-62)IGF-1, which lacks the carboxyl-terminal 8-amino-acid D-region of IGF-1; (1-27,Gly4,38-70)IGF-1, in which residues 28-37 of the C-region of IGF-1 are replaced by a four-residue glycine bridge; and (1-27,Gly4,38-62)IGF-1, with a C-region glycine replacement and a D-region deletion. Peterkofsky et al., Endocrinology, 128: 1769-1779 (1991) discloses data using the Gly4 mutant of Bayne et al., supra (vol. 264).
Cascieri et al., J. Biol. Chem., 264: 2199-2202 (1989) discloses three IGF-1 analogs in which specific residues in the A-region of IGF-1 (SEQ ID NO: 1) are replaced with the corresponding residues in the A chain of insulin. The analogs are: (Ile41,Glu45,Gln46,Thr49,Ser50,Ile51,Ser53,Tyr55,Gln56)IGF-1, an A-chain mutant in which residue 41 is changed from threonine to isoleucine and residues 42-56 of the A-region are replaced; (Thr49,Ser50,Ile51)IGF-1; and (Tyr55,Gln56)IGF-1.
Clemmons et al., J. Biol. Chem., 265: 12210-12216 (1990) discloses use of IGF-1 analogs that have reduced binding affinity for either IGF-1R or binding proteins to study the ligand specificity of IGFBP-1 and the role of IGFBP-1 in modulating the biological activity of IGF-1.
WO 94/04569 discloses a specific binding molecule, other than a natural IGFBP, that is capable of binding to IGF-1 and can enhance the biological activity of IGF-1.
Peptides that bind to IGFBP-1, block IGF-1 binding to this binding protein, and thereby release “free-IGF” activity from mixtures of IGF-1 and IGFBP-1 have been recently described (Lowman et al., Biochemistry, 37: 8870-8878 (1998); WO 98/45427 published Oct. 15, 1998; Lowman et al., International Pediatric Nephrology Association, Fifth Symposium on Growth and Development in Children with Chronic Renal Failure (New York, Mar. 13, 1999)). Also described is the natural molecule, des(1-3)IGF-1, which shows selectively reduced affinity for some of the IGF binding proteins, yet a maintained affinity for the IGF receptor (U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,077,276; 5,164,370; 5,470,828).
Exploitation of the interaction between IGF and IGFBP in screening, preventing, or treating disease has been limited, however, because of a lack of specific antagonists. To date, only one publication is known to exist that describes the application of an IGF-1/ IGF-2 antagonist as a potential therapeutic adjunct in the treatment of cancer (Pietrzkowski et al., Cancer Res., 52: 6447-6451 (1992)). In that report, a peptide corresponding to the D-region of IGF-1 was synthesized for use as an IGF-1/2 antagonist. This peptide exhibited questionable inhibitory activity against IGF-1. The basis for the observed inhibition is unclear, as the D-region does not play a significant role in IGF-IR binding but rather, in IGF-1 binding to the insulin receptor (Cooke et al., Biochem., 30:5484-5491 (1991); Bayne et al., supra (Vol. 264); Yee et al., Cell Growth and Different., 5:73-77 (1994)).
WO 00/23469 discloses the portions of IGFBP and IGF peptides that account for IGF-IGFBP binding, i.e., an isolated IGF binding domain of an IGFBP or modification thereof that binds IGF with at least about the same binding affinity as the full-length IGFBP. The patent publication also discloses an IGF antagonist that reduces binding of IGF to an IGF receptor, and/or binds to a binding domain of IGFBP.
Additionally, WO 93/23067 discloses pharmaceutical compositions comprising short peptides that function as IGF-1 receptor antagonists. The peptides used in the pharmaceutical compositions consist of less than 25 amino acids, comprise at least a portion of the C- or D-region from IGF-1, and inhibit IGF-1-induced autophosphorylation of IGF-1 receptors.
Polypeptides, including the IGF molecules, have a three-dimensional structure determined by the primary amino acid sequence and the environment surrounding the polypeptide. This three-dimensional structure establishes the activity, stability, binding affinity, binding specificity, and other biochemical attributes of the polypeptide. Thus, knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of a protein can provide much guidance in designing agents that mimic, inhibit, or improve its biological activity in soluble or membrane-bound forms.
The three-dimensional structure of a polypeptide may be determined in a number of ways. Many of the most precise methods employ x-ray crystallography (Van Holde, Physical Biochemistry (Prentice Hall: N.J., 1971), pp. 221-239). This technique relies on the ability of crystalline lattices to diffract x-ray or other forms of radiation. Diffraction experiments suitable for determining the three-dimensional structure of macromolecules typically require high-quality crystals. Unfortunately, such crystals have been unavailable for IGF-1 as well as many other proteins of interest. Crystals have been described for M-CSF (EP 668,914B1), CD40 ligand (WO 97/00895), and a BC2 Fab fragment (WO 99/01476), for example.
The crystallization of insulin is an intensively researched field, both with respect to work on structural analysis (Adams et al., Nature, 224: 491 (1969)) and pharmaceutical applications. Examples of insulin crystal suspensions that are used therapeutically include suspensions of rhombohedral zinc-insulin crystals that are stable in the presence of 0.8 to 2.5% of zinc (based on the weight of insulin) at a neutral pH value and exhibit a delayed action, and isophane insulin protamine crystals, which are used in delayed action products in the form of small rods. A few other crystal modifications of insulin are furthermore known, but these have hitherto been of interest only for X-ray structure analysis. Thus, zinc-free orthorhombic and monoclinic crystals have been obtained under acid pH conditions (Einstein and Low, Acta Crystallogr., 15: 32-34 (1962)). Smaller rhombic dodecahedra, which are to be classified in the cubic space group, have been obtained at the isoelectric point, also in the absence of zinc. Finally, a monoclinic crystal form of insulin has been obtained above the isoelectric point in the presence of zinc and in the presence of phenol or phenol derivatives. These crystals grow to a considerable size (up to 3 mm) within a few days and have sharp edges. Interestingly, these crystals have been found only on glass surfaces and not on the free surface of the solution. Crystal suspensions and other crystal forms of insulin preparations and insulin analogs are described, for example, in such representative patents as U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,959,351; 5,840,680; 5,834,422; 6,127,334; 5,952,297; 5,650,486; 5,898,028; 5,898,067; 5,948,751; 5,747,642; 5,597,893; 5,547,930; 5,534,488; 5,504,188; 5,461,031; and 5,028,587.
Various methods for preparing crystalline proteins and polypeptides are known in the art (McPherson et al., “Preparation and Analysis of Protein Crystals,” McPherson (Robert E. Krieger Publishing Company, Malabar, Fla., 1989); Weber, Advances in Protein Chemistry, 41: 1-36 (1991); U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,672,108 and 4,833,233). Although there are multiple approaches to crystallizing polypeptides, no single set of conditions provides a reasonable expectation of success, especially when the crystals must be suitable for x-ray diffraction studies. Significant effort is required to obtain crystals of sufficient size and resolution to provide accurate information regarding the structure. For example, once a protein of sufficient purity is obtained, it must be crystallized to a size and clarity that is useful for x-ray diffraction and subsequent structure resolution. Further, although the amino acid sequence of a target protein may be known, this sequence information does not allow an accurate prediction of the crystal structure of the protein. Nor does the sequence information afford an understanding of the structural, conformational, and chemical interactions between a ligand such as an IGFBP and its protein target. Thus, although crystal structures can provide a wealth of valuable information in the field of drug design and discovery, crystals of certain biologically relevant compounds such as IGF-1 are not readily available to those skilled in the art. High-quality, diffracting crystals of IGF-1 would assist the determination of its three-dimensional structure.
Generation of specific IGF-1 antagonists has been restricted, at least in part, because of difficulties in studying the structure of IGF and IGFBPs. Due to the inability to obtain crystals of IGF-1 suitable for diffraction studies, for example, an extrapolation of IGF-1 structure based on the crystal structure of porcine insulin was the most important structural road map for IGF-1 available (Blundell et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 75:180-184 (1978)). See also Blundell et al., Fed. Proc., 42: 2592-2597 (1983), which discloses tertiary structures, receptor binding, and antigenicity of IGFs. Based on studies of chemically modified and mutated IGF-1, a number of common residues between IGF- I and insulin have been identified as being part of the IGF-1R-insulin receptor contact site, in particular, the aromatic residues at positions 23-25.
Using NMR and restrained molecular dynamics, the solution structure of IGF-1 was recently reported (Cooke et al., supra). The resulting minimized structure was shown to better fit the experimental findings on modified IGF-1, as well as the extrapolations made from the structure-activity studies of insulin. Further, De Wolf et al., Protein Sci., 5: 2193-2202 (1996) discloses the solution structure of a mini-IGF-1. Sato et al., Int. J. Pept. Protein Res., 41: 433-440 (1993) discloses the three-dimensional structure of IGF-1 determined by 1H-NMR and distance geometry. Laajoki et al., J. Biol. Chem., 275: 10009-10015 (2000) discloses the solution structure and backbone dynamics of long-[Arg(3)]IGF-1. See also Laajoki et al., FEBS Lett., 420: 97-102 (1997)). The small number of NMR models available for IGF-1 are not very well defined, as there are large RMSDs between the backbone atoms of the helical segments. The best NMR model is of IGF-2 in which three alpha-helices are shown. See Torres et al., J. Mol. Biol., 248: 385-401 (1995), which discloses the solution structure of human IGF-2 and its relationship to receptor and binding protein interactions. In all structures, the C- and D-regions are very poorly defined.
In addition to providing structural information, crystalline polypeptides provide other advantages. For example, the crystallization process itself further purifies the polypeptide and satisfies one of the classical criteria for homogeneity. In fact, crystallization frequently provides unparalleled purification quality, removing impurities that are not removed by other purification methods such as HPLC, dialysis, conventional column chromatography, etc. Moreover, crystalline polypeptides are often stable at ambient temperatures and free of protease contamination and other degradation associated with solution storage. Crystalline polypeptides may also be useful as pharmaceutical preparations. Finally, crystallization techniques in general are largely free of problems such as denaturation associated with other stabilization methods (e.g. lyophilization). Thus, there exists a significant need for preparing IGF-1 compositions in crystalline form and determining their three-dimensional structure. The present invention fulfills this and other needs. Once crystallization has been accomplished, crystallographic data provides useful structural information that may assist the design of peptides that may serve as agonists or antagonists. In addition, the crystal structure provides information useful to map the receptor-binding domain, which could then be mimicked by a small non-peptide molecule that may serve as an antagonist or agonist. Also, findings regarding the detergent's inhibition of the binding of IGFBP to IGF-1 can be used to identify new IGF-1 agonists.